During the month of August, Cantalupo in Sabina hosts the Cantalupo Melon Festival.
The famous fruit gets its name from the town where, in the fifteenth century, it was introduced by missionaries from Asian countries.
In the beginning the melon was small and more bitter tasting and was eaten with pepper and vinegar like salad.
Then, thanks to a selection of growers, the fruit grew bigger, more fragrant and sweet.
During the Renaissance Lazio horticulturists began to cultivate it for the Popes in their summer residence in Cantalupo and in the old convent of San Biagio.
It seems to have been just the Carmelites who cultivated this type of melon.
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